


The Arc of Conflict, Fragment e19,3: So Beautiful It Hurts

by bzarcher, solarbird



Series: Of Gods and Monsters [128]
Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Gods & Goddesses, Background Poly, Background Relationships, Brazil, Canon Autistic Character, Enemies to Friends, Gen, Identity Issues, Injury Recovery, Other, Polyamorous Character, Questions, Relationship Issues, Self Confidence Issues
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-04
Updated: 2021-01-04
Packaged: 2021-03-14 07:15:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,022
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28541646
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bzarcher/pseuds/bzarcher, https://archiveofourown.org/users/solarbird/pseuds/solarbird
Summary: Overwatch - or what is left of it - is at war with the Gods of Oasis. Russia is in a parallel war with itself, Katya Volskaya's government against the popular uprising led by the Aleksandra Zaryanova, the Goddess of Russia. As winter sets in, Zarya's March to Moscow has slowed to a crawl.As Lúcio's thoughts on what happened coalesce, he makes time to wrestle with what questions he should be asking. But to fully understand, he knows he will need someone else's perspective.Of Gods and Monsters: The Arc of Conflictis a continuance ofThe Arc of Ascension,The Arc of Creation, andThe Armourer and the Living Weapon. To follow the story as it appears,please subscribe to the series.
Relationships: Brigitte Lindholm/Lúcio Correia dos Santos/Hana "D.Va" Song, Lúcio Correia dos Santos & Satya "Symmetra" Vaswani
Series: Of Gods and Monsters [128]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/972024
Comments: 11
Kudos: 24





	The Arc of Conflict, Fragment e19,3: So Beautiful It Hurts

**Author's Note:**

> [The formerly invitation-only widowtracer discord server](https://discord.gg/NKnPpx43mK) has decided to open up to widowtracerly fans in general - yes, gingerspider shippers are welcome - so come join that if you like!
> 
> BUFFER WATCH: JANUARY 24, 2021.
> 
> This one is another bzarcher first draft, btw.
> 
> dirtyclaws has launched [a public fan-run _Of Gods and Monsters_ discord server](https://discord.gg/pDZMpVT) and invites everyone to come join it!

Even before he’d been Changed, Lúcio had loved Costa Careyes. 

Known as much for their respect of their guests' privacy as the beauty of the beaches, the resort had always made sure that if he wanted peace and quiet, he got it. He’d even offered to do a free concert once for their staff and selected guests, and been turned down because they didn’t want to cause a fuss. 

Now, he sat on the balcony of one of their cliffside restaurants wearing a loose guayabera and futbol shorts, his hair done back in a loose braid as he watched the Pacific ocean swell and crash against the rocks, waiting for his ‘guest.’

He’d never really understood the phrase ‘so beautiful it hurt’ before, but as he took in the vibrant colours of the surrounding jungle and the brilliant sun against the ocean, Lúcio was starting to get it.

“An interesting choice of venue,” Satya Vaswani admitted as she took the seat across from him. “I appreciate the integration of the restaurant with the natural shape of the cliff.”

Lúcio nodded, taking off the wraparound sunglasses he’d been wearing as he turned to face her. “The sound of the ocean here always gets me. I mixed it into a couple of my tracks, but not many people caught it.”

Satya nodded thoughtfully, then tilted her head slightly as she listened more carefully. “It is quite unique.” 

He took a moment to take in her own dress - the blue and white sari she wore made it pretty clear who she was with if you knew how to look, but the accents of platinum and gold...they were new. 

_It’s more than that,_ he realized. _She looks... at ease. Relaxed._

_I don’t think I’ve ever seen her that way before._

An omnic waiter stopped by a few minutes later to get drink and food orders, and he was struck by how polite and respectful she was. Certainly more than he remembered her being towards _him_ before. In the old days.

“So,” Satya said calmly after she’d had a drink of her water. “You wished to speak with me?”

“Yeah.”

“May I assume it is about your recent... changes?” 

“Got it in one. I just…” He frowned, organizing his thoughts again. “I think I get it now. Or part of it. There really wasn’t another way to save us, was there.”

Satya inclined her head a bit. “I am not a doctor, obviously, but from everything I understand about the situation... no. No, there was not. Even if Angela had been able to perform a simple revival, your minds would have been badly damaged. This was the only way to save each of _you_ , and not merely your bodies.”

“I wanted to ask you about when it happened to you,” Lúcio admitted as he stirred his caipirinha. “You got taken, too, right? Without a choice?”

Satya considered that as she took a bite of a slice of grilled mango covered in tajin. “In a sense, yes. But I had more of a choice than Fareeha did. More than Angela or Lena, as well.”

Lúcio’s eyebrows rose, but as he looked at Satya he didn’t see any signs that she was lying. “So tell me about it.”

“I was flying back to Utopaea. I will admit they did hijack my plane, in a way - Lena replaced my pilot, and Angela and Moira waited to speak to me in the back of the passenger cabin until we were in the air.” 

“Oh, so they just waited to pitch you until you couldn’t get away.”

“That is one way to look at it - but they did make it clear that if I declined, they would have flown me to Utopaea and left it at that.”

He couldn’t help his skepticism. “You really believed that?”

“Angela and Lena had never lied to me before, and though Moira was an unknown quantity, her respect for science and the arts is well documented. I considered it a manageable risk.” 

Lúcio gave a soft ‘huh’, and gestured for her to go on.

“We spoke, and I raised my concerns. They answered each of them, and I found the answers acceptable.” She chuckled after taking another sip of water. “In many ways, it was the most pleasant job interview I ever experienced.”

“Concerns... like what?”

Satya went very still as she visibly prepared herself. “I am on the autism spectrum. It is part of _who I am._ I was not going to allow them to change that.”

Lúcio looked away, to where he could see the colors of the ocean waves contrasting with the ones his mind produced as it processed the sounds of water hitting rock. “And they didn’t, did they.”

“Moira was quite firm that she did not see that as a ‘problem’ to be fixed.”

“You were still you,” Lúcio murmured.

“Very much so.”

“And after you woke up?”

“I saw the world with greater clarity, thanks to the enhancements to my vision, but that information was processed in the same ways I always have.” Satya engaged her artificial arm’s hard light matrix, and wove light into a complex shape that even his eyes struggled to follow. “All the gifts of my mind were unchanged... and, as you put it, I was still entirely myself.”

She dismissed the construct before taking another bite of fruit. 

“Does that ease your mind?”

Lúcio nodded reluctantly. “Yeah... mostly. I think it does.”

“So - what will you do now?”

Lúcio took a swallow of his drink, tasting the sweetness of the sugar, the tartness of the lime, and the burning tang of the alcohol. 

“I don’t know. But... I should talk to Hana again. Soon.”

“You miss her,” Satya concluded.

“Every day.”

“And Brigitte?”

“Like I said - every day.”

Satya hummed thoughtfully, and stood. “Then I hope you are able to resolve this dispute. I have found it is... lonely, without the ones you care for.”

He put the glasses back on before he stood, and said something he’d never expected to say in complete sincerity. “Thanks, Satya.”

“You are very welcome. Good luck, Lúcio.”

**Author's Note:**

> This is the fifty-seventh instalment of _Of Gods and Monsters: The Arc of Conflict_. To follow the story, [subscribe to the series via this link](https://archiveofourown.org/series/972024), rather than to the individual works.


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